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Heartbeat President Responds to Malicious Attack from HBO's John Oliver on Pro-Life Centers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMonday | April 9, 2018Contact: Jay Hobbs, Director of Communications and MarketingThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – In a televised segment that has gained widespread media attention and approval since first airing Sunday night, HBO's Last Week Tonight with John Oliver took aim at the 2,752 locally funded pro-life pregnancy help centers and ultrasound-equipped medical clinics serving women with free help in unexpected pregnancies.

Oliver spent over 20 minutes of his show slandering pregnancy centers that offer alternatives to abortions. Among his profanity-laced tirade, Oliver accused pregnancy centers of operating deceptively by choosing locations near abortion businesses and by choosing names insufficently descriptive to meet Oliver's standards.

Heartbeat International president Jor-El Godsey responded with the following comment:

It is unfortunate, though unsurprising, when abortion extremists slander the good work of pro-life pregnancy help centers. These vital, community-funded centers exist only to empower a woman to make the healthiest choice for everyone involved in an unexpected pregnancy. To some, the only legitimate action in an unexpected pregnancy is to end the child’s life through abortion, but women deserve better than abortion.

Women deserve true choice. No mother should ever feel so alone or pressured that she feels she has no choice other than abortion.

Rather than attacking Christian pro-life individuals and groups who offer women alternatives to abortion, perhaps abortion backers would do better to police their own industry, which profits from a woman’s despair by ending her child’s life through abortion.

Oliver becomes the latest comedian to devote a significant amount of airtime to lash out against pregnancy centers. In 2015, Patton Oswalt appeared onFull Frontal with Samantha Bee, where the duo depicted pregnancy centers as "the ultimate hustle." That segment ended with one mother, a noted abortion activist named Cherrise Scott, saying she wished she had aborted her now 15-year-old son who she chose to carry to term after visiting a pregnancy center.

Starting last summer, Lizz Winstead -- a co-creator of Comedy Central's The Daily Show -- launched an anti-pregnancy center crusade where she and a small group of abortion advocates harass local pregnancy centers online and in person.

With as many as 99 percent of pregnancy center clients reporting a positive experience, none of the campaigns have gained traction, particularly among pregnancy center clients, who primarily hear about centers through word of mouth.

Contact: Jay Hobbs, Director of Communications and MarketingThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As four mothers and their babies visit Capitol Hill to tell lawmakers how pregnancy centers changed their lives for the better Thursday, Jan. 18, they’ll also have the opportunity to hear directly from U.S. Senator Joni Ernst, at Heartbeat International’s 16th Babies Go to Congress.

A Republican from Iowa, Sen. Ernst spoke at the 2016 and 2017 March for Life and is a key sponsor of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act—which ends most abortions at 20 weeks and beyond and is expected to go before the Senate the week of this year’s March for Life, Jan. 19.

Each of the four mothers participating in Babies Go to Congress overcame significant challenges to choose life in the midst of an unexpected pregnancy, thanks to the help of a locally funded and operated pregnancy center affiliated with Heartbeat International.

“We are honored to welcome Sen. Ernst to this year’s Babies Go to Congress,” Jor-El Godsey, Heartbeat International president, said. “Like pregnancy help leaders and volunteers at the local level, Sen. Ernst puts her pro-life beliefs into compassionate action. Every woman deserves the compassionate help and hope she needs to make the healthiest choice for everyone involved in an unexpected pregnancy.”

An event abortion industry leader Planned Parenthood would never dream of pulling off, Babies Go to Congress has brought 155 mothers and their children into congressional offices since Heartbeat International took its initial group to the nation’s Capitol in 2009. Overall, mothers with their children in tow have visited 315 congressional offices representing 25 states.

This year’s group is made up of mothers and children from North Carolina, Ohio, Missouri and Florida. One of the mothers, Kelsey Hedges from Missouri, refused abortion when the father of her twin girls pressured her to end their lives in the womb.

Thursday, Jan. 18, Hedges and her 15-month-old daughters will tell their story to the Senate offices of Republican Roy Blunt and Democrat Claire McCaskill, as well as the House offices of Republicans Blaine Luetkemeyer and Jason Smith.

“I was in love from the moment I laid eyes on both of them,” Hedges writes. “They are such a blessing to my life, and bring so much joy to myself and the rest of my family. I thank God often for my girls and for Pregnancy Resource Center of Rolla who saved me and my pregnancy.”

Click here to learn more about the 2018 Babies Go to Congress participants and follow their journey to Capitol Hill.

7 Moms to Tell D.C. Lawmakers Why They Chose Life

"This is one event Planned Parenthood could never dream of pulling off."

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMonday | December 12, 2016Contact: Jay Hobbs, Director of Communications and MarketingThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

COLUMBUS, OHIO – In what it hails as the most powerful pro-life event on Capitol Hill, Heartbeat International is bringing seven mothers—and their children—to Washington, D.C. this January to tell elected officials how they chose life with the help of a community-funded pregnancy center.

The event, “Babies Go to Congress,” takes place Jan. 26, the morning prior to the annual March for Life, and is Heartbeat International’s 15th such visit to the nation’s capitol since 2009. In the previous trips, 113 mothers and their children have visited a total of 265 offices—including those of both Democrats and Republicans.

In each visit, a mother who has rejected abortion with the help of a pregnancy help organization has the opportunity to tell her story, alongside both her child and the staff from the center that helped her choose life.

“This is one event Planned Parenthood could never dream of pulling off,” Heartbeat International president Jor-El Godsey said. “Pregnancy help centers empower women to make the healthiest choice for everyone involved in an unexpected pregnancy. This is a powerful platform for us to both show and tell the truth that pregnancy help centers are good for America.”

The group this year is made up of two mothers from Ohio, as well as one each from North Carolina, Missouri, Arizona, Texas and Wyoming. Though six of the mothers are bringing with them children 4 years old and younger, one mother—Nikki Pinkley from Branson, Mo.—is bringing her 14-year-old daughter to the event.

Together, Nikki and her daughter, Alexis, illustrate the positive life-long impact of that nation’s 2,600 pregnancy help centers.

Nikki was raised in the church and had recently graduated high school when she found out she was pregnant. Finding help at Options Pregnancy Clinic in Branson, she not only chose life for Alexis, but the staff at Options encouraged her to keep pursuing her education and career goals.

Today, Nikki is a closing in on a decade as a licensed professional counselor and is working on her doctoral degree in psychology.

“My hope is that every young woman facing an unplanned pregnancy will find the help she needs to face the challenges of being a single mom,” Nikki, who later married, said. “It’s not easy, but I am living proof that the future is what you make of it. Sometimes you just need someone to believe in you. I found the help I needed, plus a lot of inspiration at Options Pregnancy Clinic.”

About Heartbeat International

Heartbeat International is the first network of pro-life pregnancy help organizations founded in the U.S. (1971), and the largest network in the world. With 2,100 affiliated pregnancy help locations—including pregnancy help medical clinics (with ultrasound), resource centers, maternity homes, and adoption agencies—Heartbeat serves on all six inhabited continents to provide alternatives to abortion. For more information, see www.HeartbeatInternational.org.

Pregnancy Help Appreciation Week!

It’s that time of year again. That season where people think about what they have to be thankful for as they prepare to share the holidays with family and friends.

With all of that in mind, we at Heartbeat International realize how blessed we are to have the chance to serve you! So once again, we’re here to celebrate Pregnancy Help Appreciation Week.

If you haven't heard of Pregnancy Help Apprectiation Week, you should expect special deals, video thank-you messages, and extra prayers this week, as well as a drawing at the end of the week where one lucky winner will get a fun gift basket from us at Heartbeat!

But how do you enter the drawing? Easy!

Anyone who takes advantage of one of our appreciation week deals, submits a prayer request or praise report, or leaves a tip for Pregnancy Help News will be entered in a drawing for a free gift basket that we’ll announce LIVE on FacebookFriday, November 17th at 12 PM EST. (You need not be present to win, and you can watch the video later if you want!)

So check your email, tell us your stories, and remember, we appreciate you!

Additional Info

Pregnancy Centers Affected by Louisiana Flooding

As residents in Louisiana and Mississippi begin the long process of recovering from a record storm that swept through the region and caused multiple rivers to overflow over the past several days, friends in the pro-life pregnancy help community are among those affected by the devastating floods.

Heartbeat International’s leadership and staff have checked in on our affiliate network, both to offer these vital partners help through our H.A.L.O. fund—which meets Heartbeat-affiliated organizations damaged by natural disasters with needed funds to replace training materials—and to let you know how you can be supporting these friends in prayer.

Though Crossroads’ location was not damaged in the floods, the daughter of Executive Director Michele Beary was in the middle of moving into her college residence at Louisiana State in Baton Rouge when the storm hit. Her car was lost in the flood, but she was unharmed.

“The scope of the disaster is unreal and heartbreaking,” Michele, who formerly lived in Ascension Parish—which was badly damaged in the storm—tells us. “Please let everyone know how much their prayers for us are appreciated. God bless.”

The Women’s Help Center – Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Barbara Thomas, founder of the Family Values Resource Institute, which runs The Women’s Help Center, tells us one of her team members has sustained damage to their home over the past week.

Pregnancy Help Center – Slidell, Louisiana

Thankfully, this center was unaffected by the storms. When Heartbeat International called to check in on these friends, they were in the process of deciding how they could actively support any life-saving that was affected by the disaster.

Women’s Life Ministries Pregnancy Center – Amite, Louisiana

Though spared from major flooding damage, this outreach reports having lost some of their office equipment in a lightning strike. Because the center is located in a high place, it is fast becoming a key location for flood relief in the community. CEO Teresa Ragusa tells us her organization is busy receiving supplies to help distribute to clients and neighbors.

Iberia Pregnancy Center – New Iberia, Louisiana

Iberia Pregnancy Center’s staff reports that, though their street was flooded and flood waters came almost up to their doors, the center itself was untouched. Praise God for this wonderful protection, and please pray for clients and neighbors who have lost homes and property.

The following pregnancy help locations were also undamaged by the flood, though leaders at the centers did ask us to pray for their clients:

Dorothy Wallis, president and CEO of Caring to Love Ministries—which runs an unaffiliated pregnancy help center, reports having sustained an estimated $425,000 in damages to its building.

Although the rebuilding effort will take several months at the absolute minimum, Dorothy tells us a local abortion clinic was unaffected by the flood and Care Pregnancy Clinic continues to receive calls from abortion-vulnerable women.

Knowing the opportunism of the abortion industry that offered free morning-after pills in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and free abortions to New Yorkers in the days following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, Dorothy knows there is no time to lose in reaching women with life-saving help.

Dorothy is asking for an RV (loan or donation) her organization can to set up as a mobile ultrasound unit as soon as possible.

To find out how you can help Dorothy and Care Pregnancy Clinic, click here.

Do you know of more pregnancy help organizations affected by the recent floods? Let us know at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Heartbeat International Launches YouSaveBabies.com

Personal fundraising site to connect U.S. pregnancy help organizations with local support

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASETuesday | April 19, 2016Contact: Jay Hobbs, Director of Communications and MarketingThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

COLUMBUS, OHIO – Local pro-life pregnancy help organizations have a new way to grow the support of their community, with the launch of YouSaveBabies.com, a web platform that connects donors with the life-saving work of pregnancy centers, pregnancy medical clinics, maternity homes and nonprofit adoption agencies.

Launched by Heartbeat International, the world’s largest network of pregnancy help, YouSaveBabies enables groups and individuals to promote and raise funds for the life-saving outreach of their choice.

Ideas for starting a fundraiser—which can be promoted via social media channels—include races and other personal goals, birthdays, in memory of loved ones, or as a way to coalesce the support of local church groups around a local pregnancy center. Starting a fundraiser is as simple as selecting an organization and filling out a brief fundraising form. All donations—less credit card transaction fees—go directly to the organization of choice.

“We’re confident YouSaveBabies will play a vital role in what Heartbeat International is most committed to doing—advancing life-affirming pregnancy help at the local level,” Heartbeat International president Jor-El Godsey said. “Pregnancy help organizations are rescuing lives and helping to build strong families every single day. Donors and other supporters are invigorated to see that, and YouSaveBabies is a great way for them to connect.”

The giving platform utilizes FundEasy, web software by Ministry Sync that has helped faith-based nonprofits raise over $35 million since its rollout in 2010. Individual pregnancy help organizations can choose to embed a YouSaveBabies giving badge on their donor websites to raise awareness for newly unveiled platform.

Heartbeat International affiliates in the U.S. and those available through Heartbeat International’s 24-7 contact center Option Line (1-800-712-HELP, OptionLine.org) are automatically listed in the YouSaveBabies network, which includes over 2,000 pregnancy help locations.

“This is a great step forward for our friends on the local level, and it’s another way we can work together to build a culture where no woman ever feels so alone or coerced that she feels abortion is her only choice,” Godsey said. “Pregnancy help provides compassionate support and real choice, and these life-saving organizations have a new friend in YouSaveBabies.”

About Heartbeat InternationalHeartbeat International is the first network of pro-life pregnancy help organizations founded in the U.S. (1971), and the largest network in the world. With 2,000 affiliated pregnancy help locations—including pregnancy help medical clinics (with ultrasound), resource centers, maternity homes, and adoption agencies—Heartbeat serves on all six inhabited continents to provide alternatives to abortion.

Heartbeat Announces Launch of PregnancyHelpNews.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEWednesday | February 4, 2015Contact: Jay Hobbs, Director of Communications and MarketingThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Tweet This:"@PHC_News is an excellent bridge where we can point and say, 'This is what we do. This is our world.'"

COLUMBUS, OHIO – Seeking to unite a worldwide community made up of staff, leaders, volunteers, board members and community supporters in over 6,000 locations, Heartbeat International, the world's largest and most expansive network of life-affirming pregnancy help organizations has launched a new website, www.PregnancyHelpNews.com.

The site, which went live Jan. 19, is updated each business day with news, commentary and features, all of which affect and surround the realm of pregnancy help centers, medical clinics (with ultrasound and STI testing), maternity homes and non-profit adoption agencies.

"In our Worldwide Directory of Pregnancy Help, we list over 6,000 pregnancy help organizations," Heartbeat International Vice President Jor-El Godsey said. "Our goal with PregnancyHelpNews.com is to create a specific source of information and sort of first-stop homepage to connect these life-affirming friends around the day's news that specifically impacts the courageous work in which they are involved every day."

While promotion of the site has been largely confined to the nearly 2,000 organizations affiliated with Heartbeat International, PregnancyHelpNews.com garnered over 1,000 unique page views Monday, Feb. 2.

The top-read news story on the site is of a mother whose baby was saved through the collaboration of Abortion Pill Reversal and a Southern California pregnancy center after the mother had taken the first round of the abortion pill, RU-486. Readers are also invited to register and interact on a free conversation forum.

"One element we are especially excited to bring to the table with this site is its focus on pregnancy centers and the work they do," said Editor-in-Chief Jay Hobbs, who is joined in leadership by Senior Writer Kirk Walden, long-time publisher of Advancement Trends in the Life Community.

"We see PregnancyHelpNews.com as an excellent bridge, where anyone involved in the pregnancy help community can point friends and potential supporters and say, 'This is what we do. This is our world.'"